It Was In His Eyes
by Aldea0402
Summary: Set after "Kill Ari". There was something about her that upset the happy little apple cart that was Tony DiNozzo's guide to women


**Thank Heavens for the USA Network and their marathons. I sat yesterday and watched "Kill Ari" again, for probably what was the millionth time, and I was reminded why I fell in love with TIVA, and what they once were. I'm not so sure nowadays, and the lack of good writing for Ziva is very, very alarming.**

**This is a standalone story. It's not a continuation of my previous story "Writing Her Biography".**

**Disclaimer- I don't own them. Happy sigh… if only I did. We wouldn't be in the situation we're in now.**

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**"It Was In His Eyes…." Part 1/2**

Tony hated silence.

And on a day like today, silence was the last thing he wanted to hear.

The team along with the director, had settled into their seats aboard SecNav's plane and were silently running through their memories of Kate.

Director Shepard had never had the opportunity to meet her. But Tony couldn't help but admire the amount of empathy she'd shown during the hunt for Ari Haswari. Most Directors would have pulled the plug on the operation right away given the lack of evidence they'd initially had. This of course, would have caused Gibbs to go rogue and track him down himself. Maybe that's why she allowed him the latitude she did? Exactly how well did Gibbs and Director Shepard know each other?

Tony's first instinct was to turn to Kate and ask her opinion. The two of them could gossip with the best of them. That was when it sunk it… the reason the team was on this plane was because they were flying back to Washington after attending Kate's funeral.

Kate had always been like the sister Tony never had. They laughed, argued, supported and loved just like Tony imagined he would his sister if he'd ever had one. Every time he closed his eyes he could hear the crack of the shot that ended her life… he could feel the warm splatter of Kate's blood on his face-

He cleared his throat, just to make some noise. People shifted in their seats but no one spoke.

It was odd. Tony had seen Kate's…. ghost… spirit…. a couple of times since her death. The first had been their normal, flirtacious banter that they'd done dozens of times but Tony knew would never lead them anywhere. And of course, he'd never intended it to. He'd been imagining her in a Catholic school girl outfit. Kate of course, had been mortified, but deep down she'd enjoyed it when Tony teased her sexually. Sure, she would act completely mortified, but Tony knew her better than that.

His little fantasy in the bullpen had been interrupted by the arrival of Ziva David. Now it was Tony's turn to shift in his seat. He'd never admit this to anyone, but the Israeli woman had intrigued him. After their conversation outside of the Embasero hotel, Tony was glad she would be gone by the time they arrived back in Washington. There was something about her that upset the happy little apple cart that was Tony DiNozzo's guide to women. He'd known her for less than five minutes before she'd caused his breath to hitch in his throat. One meaningful conversation with her over espresso and cold pizza and he'd wanted nothing more than two sit with her in front of a roaring fireplace and hear her whole life story.

The ease at which she'd slipped into Tony's soul disturbed him. She was dangerous…. someone to be wary of. Not at all the type of woman Tony would want to settle down with.

'Whoa whoa whoa. Settle down with? What the hell are you thinking?' He chastised himself.' It's the emotion of burying Kate. It stirred up too many bad memories in his mind. It will get better in a few days.' He consoled himself.

The motion of the plane taxying down the runway drew Tony's attention back to here and now. He glanced at Gibbs whose eyes were focused out the window.

The familiar feel of the plane lifting into the air caused Tony to lean his head back against the seat. The silence continued until the plane began to level out. Unable to take it anymore, Tony spoke.

"Boss?"

Gibbs turned his gaze in his direction. What was in his eyes intrigued Tony.

"Ari?" He asked.

Gibbs' eyes changed again. A look of sadness, relief and….caring? Tony was confused.

Gibbs glanced at the other members of his team. Abby and McGee were sitting side by side across the aisle, Ducky sitting across from them. Director Shepard was sitting on her own looking through some files she'd pulled from her briefcase.

"Gather 'round." Gibbs stated loudly, drawing everyone's attention. Abby moved to sit next to Tony, McGee sitting back at her side. Ducky moved next to Gibbs. Director Shepard came forward and sat next to Ducky.

Gibbs leaned forward and looked at Jenny. "Your friend, Ziva, what do you know about her?"

Jenny looked surprised for a moment then shrugged. "I know that I trust her with my life. She's a good agent. "

Gibbs shook his head. "That I knew." He focused on his team members. "Director Shepard and I were partners years ago in Europe. I trust her. And I knew that if she trusted Ziva then there was probably a good reason to."

Tony was taken aback. In all the years he'd worked with Gibbs, he'd never heard him speak this honestly.

Gibbs continued. "Ari Haswari is dead." He announced to everyone.

Mixed reactions of relief, shock, and triumph filled the cabin of the plane. The only two people unfazed by the news were Gibbs and Director Shepard. "How did it happen?" She asked.

Gibbs thought for a moment. He turned in Jenny's direction. "I took a huge gamble. I placed my trust in Ziva. She told Ari that I was going to the rooftop where Kate died to lay flowers there. The plan was for Ziva is lie in wait and hear the conversation between Ari and I. It would be the proof Mossad would need to deal with him."

Jenny snorted. "Oh please. You were going to kill him."

Gibbs smiled softly. "Ziva didn't know that."

Shepard rolled her eyes and shook her head. "She may be young, but give her more credit than that."

Gibbs shook his head. "She knew that if what I was saying was true, Ari needed to be dealt with one way or another. She was willing to take that risk. But our plan didn't work out anyway."

He became silent. Tony closed his eyes momentarily and was immediately greeted with the sound of Ari's gunshot and the sound it made when it ripped through Kate's head.

"Boss?" He said louder than he should have.

Gibbs' stare focused on him again. There it was again… something in his eyes that Tony didn't understand.

"Ziva was with me. She intentionally told Ari a later time so we could get her there and in position. She wanted a sniper rifle in case she needed to take Ari out. I didn't want to bring the rest of NCIS into this plan in case it went awry so we stopped at my house to get my old sniper rifle. Ari was waiting for me."

Everyone on the plane waited with baited breath. "Ari was in the basement waiting for me. He had my loaded rifle in his hand and was rambling on about why he killed Kate… how it was all a plot to get back at his Father." Gibbs paused for a moment. "He didn't realize Ziva was in the house. She heard the whole exchange. She was able to distract him long enough for me to pull my weapon and kill him."

Gibbs' eyes locked with Tony's momentarily before he looked away. That was when the words popped into Tony's mind; 'He's lying.'

Gibbs continued to look out the window. "I called Fornell. The FBI is investigating the shooting." He suddenly turned angrily in Jenny's direction. "Did you know that Ari was Ziva's brother?"

Jenny's eyes widened. "What? No. She never told me she has a brother."

"Had." Gibbs corrected. "She was crying over Ari's body bleeding on my basement floor. That was when she told me he's her half brother. This Assistant Director David... he's their Father."

Tony's heart clenched. 'First her sister. Now her brother. Oh my God.'

The need to suddenly be with Ziva consumed him. He could hear Gibbs and the Director speaking but couldn't focus on it. All he could think of was her and the look in her eyes when she talked about losing her sister.

The words blurted out of his mouth interrupting the conversation going on between the Director and Gibbs. "Where's Ziva now?"

Both looked at him oddly, Gibbs' eyes narrowing slightly. "She's escorting Ari's body back to Israel."

Tony felt gutted. "She…. She's gone?"

Gibbs sat back in his seat. "Yeah DiNozzo. She's going home to bury her brother."

The inside cabin of the plane faded away. Tony sat back in his seat and didn't speak the rest of the way home.

Once the plane had landed, Tony quickly bid everyone goodbye and sought quiet comfort in his car. He was exhausted and needed sleep, however the thought of hearing the gunshot over and over in his mind was too much.

It was now evening as Tony maneuvered his car over the still rain slicked streets. He pulled into a parking garage and took the key out of his car before he even realized where he was.

'Why did you come here? She's not here.' His mind told him. However it was like an unseen force was guiding his actions. He pulled the key from the ignition and quickly exited the garage, walking across the street to stand under the awning of the Embasero Hotel.

Standing there, he could swear he still felt the heat radiating from her body as the rain poured down around them. The rain of course was long gone, and he was alone, but somehow, someway, she'd gotten under his skin.

He wondered if she felt the same thing?

He stood there for several more moments before turning and heading through the doors. 'Maybe she left me a note or something?' He asked.

The same guy was on duty at the desk that had been there the other night. Tony flashed him his badge. "I'm NCIS Agent Anthony DiNozzo. There was a woman staying here in room 508, Ziva David. I knew she checked out but I was wondering if she left anything here for me."

Well, it seemed like a good idea until the words left his mouth. 'You idiot! Of course she didn't leave anything for you! What is wrong with you?' His mind screamed.

Tony thought the desk clerk looked at him like he'd grown a second head. 'Yeah man, I'm Tony DiNozzo, Special Agent, who's whipped by a woman who doesn't give two cares in the world if I'm alive or dead'. Tony said to himself.

"Sorry Sir, she didn't leave anything here."

Tony winced slightly but nodded and quickly turned to flee the embarrassing situation.

The clerk's words rang out. "But Sir, you can speak to her yourself. I saw her go into the bar about an hour ago."

Tony froze. He turned slowly towards the door where the clerk said she was. "She's still here." He mumbled. It came out more of a statement than a question. The clerk merely shrugged and moved down the desk to help a waiting couple.

Before he could think, formulate a thought, or figure out exactly what was happening to him, his feet began moving him through the doorway into the bar.

To Be Continued


End file.
